An Afternoon Anomaly
by onigiri5
Summary: A seemingly innocuous trip to town leads Lotte, Barbara and Hannah to a mysterious house that was rumored to be an old home of the original Nightfall writer. Another follow up to "Night Reading".
1. Chapter 1

__Once upon a time, there was a legendary witch who loved to write stories. It wasn't long until her novels, filled from cover to cover with love, thrills, and adventure, garnered her many readers. Little did her fans know, her stories reflected a bit of her life. Where she found joy or sorrow, she expressed it through her books. One day, something dreadful happened to a precious friend of the witch. It drove her into a deep sadness. So sad was she that she locked herself in her room for weeks. As the days went by, it was said that she ate nothing and saw no one. All that was heard were the ruffling of papers and the scratching of her magical fountain pen from behind a locked door. After what seemed to be an eternity, she finally emerged from her self imposed prison with a stack of yellowed, dirty papers. Only the closest friends of the witch read the manuscript, and all of which were struck with an inexplicable and terrible illness. Fearing that her beloved readers might suffer the same fate, she sealed the manuscript and hid it in one of her many homes. Only a few know of the true location of Annabel Creme's cursed, unpublished volume of Nightfall, all of which were sworn to secrecy. However, rumors say that it was hidden in a house here in Brightonbury. Some say you need a certain key to find that specific house. Some say this house traps the souls of all who enter it and they will never see the light of day. Some say she-__

"This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard!" Hannah's voice was so loud that it felt like it shook the shelves of Last Wednesday Society. She threw her arms in the air in exasperation, much to the surprise of the shopkeeper as well as her two companions. "You're telling me you two believe this tripe?!"

"Hannah, p-please calm down!" Barbara tried to ease her hysterical friend.

"L-let's not make a scene." Lotte attempted to join Barbara in pacifying Hannah. Her eyes darted around the magic shop, meeting the eyes of several other gawking witches who were there for tea, wares, and a quiet moment.

Lotte wasn't exactly sure why Hannah wanted to tag along with Barbara and her today. She had arranged this meeting with Barbara after hearing rumors of a super rare Nightfall-related item. Said item was currently in the shopkeeper's hands, who also happened to have a distinctly annoyed face that made Lotte panic even more since Hannah was showing no signs of stopping her tirade.

"Hey, you two make your friend shut up. I'm not liking this whole scaring my customers business she's pulling" The irritated shopkeeper waved a rather large and tarnished silver key in front of the girls as he leaned on the counter. "I mean, I don't got all day to entertain you lot either."

Horrified at the thought of losing their opportunity to obtain rare Nightfall merchandise, both witches covered Hannah's mouth with their hands so quickly that an audible slapping sound was heard. Hannah yelled in pain, but was thankfully muffled by the combined effort of the duo.

"We're sorry! Please reconsider!" Barbara and Lotte begged in unison as they held their free hands in front of them as if praying.

The shopkeeper, surprised at first, let out a little chuckle. He appeared amused at the sight of the two witches attempting to keep their friend quiet, despite her muffled screams and the fist shaking. With tattooed fingers, he slid the key across the counter and towards the trio.

"Tell you what, I'll give you girls a discount as long as you keep her far away from my store. Is that cool?"

A wide smile spread across Lotte's face. She looked over to Barbara, who had a smile as wide as hers.

"Yes! Thank you!" They nodded in unison.

* * *

Despite the spots of tarnish, the silver key shimmered against the late afternoon sky. Lotte admired her newly acquired Nightfall artifact as she held it above her head. She noted how the crimson sunset made it look more brilliant. She liked the little details and intricacies it had, from the familiar candle design engraved on its bow, to the minuscule nicks and scratches along its teeth, which marked heavy usage. Lotte looked closely at the scratches. It puzzled her as to why it had such flaws in the first place. She heard from GreatBen810 that it was supposed to be a giveaway item used to promote the 100th volume of Nightfall. Only a hundred such keys were apparently given out and were only for promotional use. Surely these keys had no real usage otherwise.

"Pretty, isn't it?"

Lotte was so absorbed in thought that she forgot that Barbara walked beside her, also admiring the key. "Yes, it's very lovely!" She composed herself and lowered the key to give Barbara a better view. "Thanks again for coming with me to pick it up, Barbara."

"It's no problem at all! I'm just glad I get to see one of the rare hundred." Barbara made a grin that caused Lotte's heart to flutter. "Who knew such a collectible somehow ended up here?"

"It's thanks to GreatBen, honestly!" Lotte hoped the sunset would hide how flushed her face was. "Anyway, I was thinking about how you should keep it." Lotte stopped in her tracks and with both hands, thrust the key towards Barbara's chest.

With a surprised face, Barbara looked down at the key and then tried to push the key back to Lotte. "Wait, you can't be serious! I'm sure this means a lot to you!" Barbara protested but Lotte insisted.

"It's a gift! For um..." Lotte leaned forward towards Barbara. She could feel the heat radiating from Barbara's blushing face as she whispered to her ear, "Happy one month anniversary!"

Lotte smiled as she finally handed her present to a flustered Barbara, whose face was so red that she could have easily blended with with the crimson sky. Her lips trembled and her eyes welled up with tears as she delicately held the key. After quickly wiping her eyes with her sleeve, she looked at Lotte.

"Th-thank you Lotte! I lo-"

"Can you two move a bit faster? I wanna get home before it gets dark!" Hannah was several feet ahead of them. Her annoyed expression indicated that she was still miffed about the whole shop incident. With hands in her coat pocket, she casually walked back towards her companions, oblivious of their small moment.

"Sorry about that, Hannah." Barbara smiled as an apology.

Lotte could tell from Hannah's raised eyebrow and scowl that she was growing increasingly impatient. Once again, she questioned as to why Hannah decided to tag along, especially since she isn't the kind of person who was receptive of all things Nightfall related. Not to mention that Lotte solely asked Barbara to come with her to Brightonbury. It was supposed to be a... date of sorts. The whole anniversary and present thing was a plan that Lotte had in the works for a week. Unfortunately, she never accounted for a spanner named Hannah.

"Are you coming or not?" Hannah's voice was sharp and terse.

"R-right!" Lotte wasn't sure if it was the chilly weather or Hannah's voice that made her shiver. She couldn't help but feel a bit of animosity coming from the fact that Hannah has become a lot friendlier to Akko and Sucy lately, she still remained cold towards Lotte. She has had her suspicions as to why she acted this way, but she couldn't bring herself to confront Hannah about it.

"Hm? What do you have there, Barbara?"

"Oh, it's the key." She held it up to Hannah with a wide smile. "It's actually Lotte's present to me."

"I see..." Hannah shrugged nonchalantly and continued to walk ahead of the two. Lotte caught a glimpse of a scowl on Hannah's face.

The three witches continued their quiet stroll through the town, which by now has become deserted. Shoes that tapped on the concrete sidewalk reverberated throughout the empty streets as they turned every familiar corner on their way to the terminal. The audible rustling of their overcoats caused by the cold wind made Lotte feel a bit sentimental. She longed for a moment with Barbara; to feel her warmth and closeness, to hold her hand and maybe lean on her shoulder, but she felt uneasy with Hannah around. Nevertheless, she found the courage to move closer to her.

"Say, um..." Lotte was now shoulder to shoulder with Barbara. "Do you think what the shopkeeper said was true?"

"That story he had about the cursed manuscript?"

"Yeah, you don't think this key..." Lotte's voice was hushed "...is the key to one of Annabel's houses?"

Barbara was silent as she stared at the twinkling key. Her eyes fixated at the little details and perhaps she saw the flaws that Lotte noticed earlier. She brought the trinket closer to her face, meticulously scanning for other details. After a minute or two, she stopped in her tracks. Lotte looked over to Barbara and saw her eyes were wide with excitement.

"Oh, what is it now?" Hannah's voice shattered the silence and startled the other two witches.

"It's nothing!" Barbara quickly blurted out, but then immediately took her words back. "No, actually it might be something..."

Hannah put her hands to her hips. She had a smile that would have conveyed patience if it weren't for the incessant tapping of her foot. "Go on,"

"Well, I was just thinking, this key was supposed to be a prize for the 100th Nightfall volume, but it doesn't quite look like it."

"What do you mean?" Hannah folded her arms.

"It looks worn out." Lotte interjected. She looked at Barbara, who gave her a smile and a nod of approval.

A disgruntled sigh escaped Hannah as she rolled her eyes. Lotte wasn't really expecting Hannah to react any other way. Nevertheless, she was crestfallen by her... unenthusiastic response.

"I wish you two would quit it with this whole haunted books mumbo jumbo. It's starting to really annoy me." She waved her hand in dismissal as she turned around to continue walking.

Any other day, Lotte would have let Hannah go on. She would have looked to her side and get an apologetic smile from Barbara. She would have looked down in defeat and continue walking in silence until they reached the terminal. The wall of silence that Hannah built around Lotte and her would grow taller and taller. Today wasn't any other day, however. Truthfully, Lotte was almost out of patience. She didn't think it through when she spoke up.

"Why do you want us to drop it, Hannah? Are you scared about a silly story or something?"

Hannah stopped in her tracks as if she slammed against a brick wall. Her shoulders perked up and her hands balled into fists as she stood ahead of them in silence. Lotte on the other hand, felt her blood rush through her throbbing temples. Her heart hammered through her chest and she felt a bit foolish when she realized what she had done. She didn't look at Barbara, but she could just imagine her mortified face and immediately wanted to apologize to her for destroying the fragile wall of civility that she had between Hannah and her.

"What did you say?" Hannah finally spoke up. She turned her head and Lotte could make out an unmistakable glare and a face flushed with fury. Lotte felt like shrinking.

"Are you trying to make fun of me? Do you seriously think I get scared that easily?" In a blink of an eye, Hannah stormed her way back and pushed her face against Lotte's. "You're really driving my patience, you...!" Lotte took a step back but Hannah stepped forward in retaliation, not letting her escape or even give any space to breathe. Every rapid fire sentence coming from the redhead was punctuated with a jab of her index finger on Lotte's chest.

"Enough, you two!" Barbara grabbed their shoulders and pushed both witches away from each other, much to Lotte's relief.

An uneasy silence between the three followed which was occasionally interrupted by a seething Hannah's audible breathing. She looked like she was using all of her will from lunging at Lotte. Lotte averted Hannah's glare by looking down at her shoes and the dusty ground beneath them. Actually, she wanted to avoid looking at Barbara more. She felt regret and shame at involving Barbara in her little spat with Hannah. In the heat of the moment, she forgot that Barbara was there and would be forced to step between an argument between Hannah and her. Lotte wished she could eat her words. Barbara's hand on her shoulder felt heavy. Hannah's glare made her feel small. The world felt like it was shrinking around her. She just wanted to run and hide under covers. It was only when Lotte felt Barbara's hand on her shoulder relax did she slowly look up.

Lotte didn't understand why Barbara's jaw dropped. Barbara looked back and forth around them, her long hair flying in all directions as she frantically turned her head. Lotte looked towards Hannah next, who had an equally confused expression. It took another second for Lotte to realize that, for some reason, there was now a brick wall behind her. In fact, the three of them seem have found themselves in a dead end alley.

"W-where are we?" Lotte managed to say something. No reply came from Barbara nor Hannah; both were still speechless and confused.

Lotte touched the wall. It was tangible, at least and not some sort of spell or illusion. She looked up and she could see the orange sky and what seemed to be twelve meters of red brick surrounding them on three sides. Her first instinct was to climb the wall to get a good view of her surroundings, but as she grabbed a brick to begin her ascent, she felt it crumble in her hands. Flying was out of the question since their brooms were left at the terminal. Not to mention that the magic in their wands was depleted at that point. Lotte was out of ideas.

"Th-this is really weird..." The fear in Barbara's voice caused her to shake. "How did we end up here?"

"Hello?!" Hannah on the other hand cupped her hands over her mouth and called out loud. "Can anyone hear me?"

Silence. Not even the chirping of birds. Only an echo responded to Hannah, who was becoming more furious by the second.

"I guess we just have to follow this alley." With resignation, Hannah kicked the ground and walked ahead of Barbara and Lotte. She didn't bother looking at them as they wordlessly followed her.

The alley was featureless, aside from the dirt path and what seemed to be unending, cracked brick walls. Gray fog obscured what waits ahead of them. It was particularly strange since they never seem to reach it and it was as if it kept its distance ahead of the trio. Lotte felt uneasy as they continued to follow the path. She had completely lost track of the time and wasn't even sure how long they had been walking. She looked up to see the first stars of the night appear, winking down at them. The sky turned a shade of eerie purple and the air grew colder. Lotte was about to fold her arms to keep herself warm when she felt a familiar touch holding her hand. It was Barbara. Lotte felt her heart swell but the sight of a troubled Barbara made her heart sink back and fall to her gut. She gave her an assuring grin at her in an attempt to cheer her up, and Barbara returned with an precarious smile.

"I'm sure we'll find the way out. This'll just be some silly story we'll tell the others when we get back to Luna Nova." Another attempt at cheering Barbara gave a better response. Her smile widened and she followed with a nod.

Both girls were so distracted with one another that they didn't notice that Hannah stopped walking until they bumped into her. Lotte immediately apologized and expected Hannah to start another tirade, but she was unusually quiet. Lotte was confused at first but immediately understood as to why Hannah had to stop when she looked ahead of her.

The walls have now expanded to encompass what seemed to be an old, dilapidated brick house. Its large, boarded windows stared ominously at the trio, not unlike the empty eye sockets of a skull. Thick vines covered its walls in a tangling, suffocating embrace that reached all the way up to the second floor. The chipped and faded paint that clung to its scarred walls hinted at its former splendor. Lotte couldn't remember seeing anything like this house in Brightonbury. In fact, it looked rather... out of place. She studied the house from afar but Hannah took the initiative circling the house. She disappeared as she turned the corner and reappeared on the other side a few minutes later.

"Looks like the alley ends here..." Hannah reported, her hand to her chin. "There's no way out by the looks of it. The walls just go around the house." She then turned towards Lotte and Barbara. "Well, I'm out of ideas. You two have anything better?"

"H-hey, you saw that?" Barbara chimed as she pointed upwards.

Lotte followed her finger and noticed something peculiar; light shined through the gaps of one of the boarded windows. She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes to be sure and quickly put them back on. There was no mistaking it. What was an unlit room a moment ago showed some signs of life.

"Well that solves everything!" Hannah exclaimed. "Let's just ask the owner if they know a way out of this creepy place."

Without hesitation, or even a thought of asking for a second opinion from her two companions, Hannah grabbed Barbara by the arm and rushed towards the house.

"W-wait, Hannah!" Barbara attempted to calm her friend down.

Hannah didn't relent as she stomped her way up the creaking front steps and grabbed the rusted door knob. She turned it from side to side but it wouldn't budge. Lotte immediately caught up to see an irritated Hannah wrenching at the door knob. When that was no use, Hannah proceeded to pound at the ancient door.

"Hello? Anyone home? "

Only the wind answered.

Lotte could see Hannah's shoulders slump as she let go of Barbara's arm and give up on the door. She turned away from the door, giving Lotte a view of the rusted handle, which had a single keyhole underneath it and...

"What's this?"

With her sleeve. Lotte wiped the dirt off an indentation next to the keyhole to reveal a familiar engraving. It only took a half second for Lotte to realize what it was and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. There was no mistaking that distinct candleholder with a lit candle and the disembodied hand holding it.

"No way!" Barbara whispered next to Lotte, who approached the door to get a good view of the engraving. She held her silver trinket next to the keyhole and placed the bow of the key side by side with the engraving. It was a perfect match.

Hannah, who peered over their shoulders after noticing the excitement, spoke up. "This can't be, can it? I m-mean, it was just supposed to be just a legend, right?"

"There's only one way to find out..." Lotte's voice was quiet as she met Barbara's concerned stare.

Barbara gulped and nodded. With shaking hands, she inserted the key through the keyhole and turned it. There was a soft click and the rusted knob turned.

* * *

 **AN: I'm not the type who enjoys writing drama, so this was particularly difficult to write. I wanted some sort of interaction between these three, especially Hannah's reactions. I found it fitting to write it in Lotte's point of view (mostly because the previous two stories were Barbara and Hannah's POV respectively) to make Hannah appear "unreadable" although I don't think I managed to pull that off well. Still, I hope you enjoyed it!**


	2. Chapter 2

Lotte stared at the doorknob silently for what seemed like hours. She waited for Barbara to push the door open and reveal what lies within the house. At the corner of her eye, she noticed a tense Hannah who looked very pale. No snide remark came from her as the two of them continued to wait, and wait, and wait for Barbara to do... something. It was after a few minutes when Hannah's impatience got the best of her and she spoke up.

"C-c'mon Barbs. Open the d-door already!"

With trembling hands, Barbara released the knob and shook her head. "I don't know. It doesn't feel right. I mean, if this is really Annabel Creme's house, doesn't that mean that the cursed-"

"I'm pretty sure there's no such thing as a cursed book in this house!" Hannah interjected with fierce incredulity. Her balled hands were visibly trembling. "And... and even if there is, let's not read it, okay?"

Barbara, who appeared convinced, nodded and looked to Lotte for approval. Lotte wasn't entirely sure how to react. There was no reason to rule out the possibility of a legendary cursed volume, but Hannah does bring up a valid countermeasure. Taking everything into account, she smiled and nodded at Barbara, who also smiled in return.

With now steady hands, Barbara gripped the knob, turned it, and pushed the door open. There was a flash of light followed by a loud, howling wind coming from the threshold. Lotte put her hands over her face and shut her eyes to shield herself from the blinding the light. She planted her feet firmly to the the ground to prevent herself from getting knocked down by the wind. Much to her surprise, the gust died died down almost immediately. Warily, she opened her eyes and blinked after she realized that the blinding light disappeared along with the wind. Lotte lowered her hands to get a good view of a room with polished floors, ornate rugs and antique paintings that adorned its wooden walls. An old, worn couch sat in front of a brick fireplace, which was alight. One one side of the room, a hallway lead to darkness. On the other side, polished wooden stairs made their way up to the second floor.

Lotte looked beside her, where an equally confused Barbara and Hannah stared at the room they found themselves in with wonder. Behind them a closed door stood. The silver key that led them to this uncanny abode jutted from the keyhole.

"What is this place? How did we get inside? Are we even inside the house?" Question after question came from Barbara, who took a step back to reach for the door behind her. She grabbed the knob and it didn't turn. Turning the key yielded no result. All she could do was take it out. "N-no way. Don't tell me..." Her sentence trailed off. Perhaps she was afraid to admit the situation they found themselves in.

"I think we're stuck here..." Lotte finished the sentence for her.

Without a word, Hannah leaped in between them and to the door. She fruitlessly rattled the knob, and when that gave no reaction, she gave the door a swift kick. "Argh! I can't believe this!" Hannah gave the door another furious kick before she stomped her way to the couch and threw herself on it with a loud plop.

"There must be a reason how we got here, like maybe the old house is a leyline of some sort." Barbara tried to rationalize as she followed Hannah towards the hearth.

Lotte on the other hand, circled the room and studied the paintings. A lot of them were picturesque scenery while others looked vaguely familiar to her. She smacked her fist on her flat, open palm when she recognized the unmistakable Great Ben tower as well as the wide open field populated by poppies where Arthur and Edward's first battle occurred. These were all settings in Nightfall! So this must really be one of the original Annabel Creme's homes. She had only heard rumors that whenever Annabel was about to write another volume of Nightfall, she would hide away into one of her secret houses like this to avoid publicity. That would explain how the three of them ended up here in the first place. They key must be the root to all of the weirdness that was happening.

With a wide smile, she turned to Hannah and Barbara, who were now seated on the couch, warming themselves in front of the fire place. "Girls, I th-"

Lotte was about to let her two companions know of the owner of the strange house when her eye caught sight of a shadow standing in the darkened hallway. It was the outline of a little girl, no mistake about it. What made Lotte filled with dread was that the figure was featureless. Flames flickered from the fireplace, occasionally lighting the hallway, but the girl remained a dark void except for two twinkling orbs, that stared back at her. Lotte gasped as she backed into the wall with a soft thud. Barbara and Hannah, who looked at Lotte after she got their attention were puzzled by her strange behavior and turned around towards the hallway.

"What's wrong Lotte? Did you see something there?"

Lotte blinked and there was no one standing in the hallway anymore. She felt shivers running down her spine, which made their way to her knees. It made her feel weak and she grasped the wall just to help herself stand up.

"I... I don't know." Despite trembling violently, she managed to speak. "I thought... I thought I saw someone... or something over there..." She pointed at the darkened hallway.

The trio fell silent. The sound of the crackling fire permeated throughout the room as Lotte expected something to reveal itself from the shadows at any moment.

"Y-you can't be serious!" Hannah's confidence slowly eroded with every word. "Stop m-messing around!"

Lotte wanted to believe that it was all in her head. She was just seeing things. She was tired after all and she skipped lunch just to get to town on time. But those twinkling eyes and the silhouette of a long haired girl burned in her mind. She shook her head, her eyes still transfixed at the hallway, unable to pry them away.

"How about we just go upstairs a-and ask whoever lives here the way out?" Barbara chimed and sounded the most composed of the three of them, but her stammer gave away that she was as spooked as her two friends.

Lotte and Hannah nodded and the three started to make their way up the stairs. Cautiously and with shifting eyes, they took every step up the creaky wooden stairs. Barbara led the way, followed by Hannah and finally, Lotte trailed them. Lotte grasped the wooden guard rail with sweaty palms. She could feel her heart throbbing through her ears as they made their way up. She looked behind her only to see the walls being lit by the dancing flame. Transfixed by the ephemeral patterns, she didn't notice Hannah stopped ahead until she bumped into her.

Confused, Lotte looked up and ahead and was immediately met by the familiar shape of the girl at top of the stairs. Its twinkling eyes flickered as if on fire and it now had an unnaturally wide grin that went from ear to ear. Its breath was very much visible as a low growl escaped between the sharp rows of teeth.

A chorus of screams filled the house.

Lotte could see Barbara and Hannah's terrified faces as they turned around to descend down the stairs. Lotte followed in suit. She blinked and the flames that lit the wooden walls disappeared. She blinked again and she could feel a cold wind rushing down from the top of the stairs. Another blink and the polished walls transformed into gray, rotted wood. As she finally made it to the bottom of the stairs, she heard the sickening crunch of breaking wood. The floor beneath her gave way and all she could feel was the sensation of falling followed by darkness.

* * *

Lotte awoke on a cold floor and felt a dull pain all over her body. She instinctively touched her face and felt her glasses, which were thankfully intact. Still, everything around her was blurry, except for a faint light close to her legs. She attempted to sit up to get a better view, but felt a hand push down her shoulder.

"Keep still."

Lotte's eyesight finally adjusted and finally made out the side of Hannah's stern face. She saw her glance at her very quickly but then immediately returned her attention to Lotte's leg. Lotte could feel warm blood streaming from her leg. Clenching her leg muscles produced a sharp pain and she winced.

"I said keep still. You want this spell to work or not?"

Lotte nodded. She could feel her head resting on something soft and she quickly determined that Hannah had used her overcoat as a makeshift pillow for her.

"I thought you were all out of magic?"

Hannah was quiet for a bit, still concentrating on pointing her wand at Lotte's wound. "I save a bit of it, just in case stuff like this happens." Hannah said, eyes still fixed on the gash.

"Where's Barbara?" Lotte finally noticed the absence of their third companion.

"Dunno. Just woke up like this." The laconic response was followed by a long silence between the two witches.

Lotte's heart sank at the thought of the shadow taking Barbara captive. She hoped that whatever it was, it had no intention of harming her. Lotte began to look around the room they found themselves in. Although dark, the light from Hannah's wand lit stark shadows among old cobweb ridden shelves filled with broken glass bottles and abandoned wares. The dusty stone floor indicated that no one has stepped in this room for a long time. Lotte looked at the ceiling next. She squinted and made out a large hole, its borders traced by splintered wood. This must be some kind of basement, she thought. She must have fallen down here with Hannah.

Lotte then moved her attention to Hannah. Her usual haughty eyebrows pointed down and her shoulders drooped. Her ever present condescending smirk was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a distinct air of melancholy surrounded her, accentuated by the incandescent glow coming from her wand. In their shared moment of vulnerability, Lotte was compelled to speak to her.

"I hope Barbara's safe."

Hannah nodded, but continued to concentrate on Lotte's wound. "She'll be fine," she whispered softly, although a hint of concern was audible.

It was quiet again. The silence pained Lotte more than her injured leg. She wanted to confide in Hannah; to huddle with her and feel security in this strange and unfamiliar place. And yet despite their physical closeness at the moment, Hannah was emotionally distant. It wasn't so much as a wall that separated them. It felt like a barren desert, shrouded in an oppressive silence, occasionally disturbed by a storm of hostilities coming from Hannah. It stretched for miles, and in the middle of it was Barbara.

"Hannah," Lotte reached out but Hannah didn't respond. "Why do you hate me?"

Hannah flinched, shifted her eyes at Lotte but then darted back. "I don't hate you."

"Is it because Barbara likes m-"

"Shut up!"

Hannah dropped her wand and darkness pervaded the basement. It took a while for Lotte's eyes to adjust, but soon she could make out Hannah's shaking silhouette. Her arm rubbed across her face and For a minute or two, she could hear sniffing.

"It's not fair..." a chocked whisper came from Hannah. "What does she even see in you besides those stupid books? We've known each other for so long and done so many things together and all you two do is just... giggle over some stupid stories."

Lotte was quiet, unable to offer any meaningful comment to Hannah's outburst. Feelings of guilt enveloped her, much like the darkness that surrounded them. She had always suspected that Hannah was jealous of her relationship with Barbara, but finally hearing it directly from Hannah made her chest tighten with an indescribable pain. Lotte wanted to reach out to Hannah, to hold her shoulder, to comfort her, or to express some kind of sentiment. She wanted to do something to wave away the void that engulfed them. She sat up, ignoring the pain in her leg and blindly reached out for Hannah.

"I said keep still, didn't I?" Hannah's voice shot out from the darkness, and it paralyzed Lotte.

Lotte heard the clink of a wand as it was picked up. A warm light shined once more and Hannah resumed healing Lotte's leg. Hannah looked away, hiding her face from Lotte. Despite this, Lotte could make out tears on Hannah's cheek that she failed to rub away. They reflected the light from her wand. As Hannah deftly waved her wand, ribbons of light streamed from it which then closed the wound.

"I'm only doing this because of Barbara." Hannah sniffed. "You're the one who makes her the most happy. She tells me how much she... she loves you and how much you two care for each other."

Lotte burned up at the thought of Barbara telling her about her feelings for her. She looked away and attempted to calm herself down. Hannah put her wand down and its light dimmed to that of a candle. She touched Lotte's leg softly, prodding the healed gash. Lotte could still feel a bit of pain, but it wasn't as bad as it was before.

"I'm not as good as Diana. She's still teaching me this spell after all." Hannah's voice lowered to a whisper. "You might still feel a bit sore. Do you think you can stand up?"

Lotte nodded and attempted to stand but felt her leg muscles burn. She closed her eyes tight as she winced in pain.

"Here."

Lotte opened her eyes and met Hannah's outstretched hand. She was speechless and stared at her hand for a bit and made sure it wasn't some illusion or spell. With slight apprehension, Lotte grasped it. It was soft and warm and tangible, at least. Hannah pulled her up gently and supported Lotte with her shoulder. She placed her hand under Lotte's arm and held her close.

"Th-thanks..." Lotte didn't know what else to say as she handed Hannah her overcoat. "I'm sorry, Hannah."

Hannah clicked her tongue. "Don't be sorry, idiot! Barbara chose you and there's nothing we can do about that." Hannah grabbed her overcoat from Lotte and slung it over her shoulder.

"Listen, this... this didn't happen, okay?" Hannah said. "You didn't hear me say anything. I didn't heal your leg or anything. You just sprained it, right?"

Lotte nodded.

"Also," Hannah took a deep breath and then exhaled loudly. "Don't you ever dare make Barbara cry. I won't forgive you! You understand?"

Lotte nodded again but then couldn't help but giggle.

"T-take this seriously, will you?" Hannah frowned. "Just because I... I'm giving you my blessings doesn't mean that I won't keep an eye on you." Hannah raised her wand above her head to get a better view of the basement. The shadows of the room dissolved and revealed stairs that led back to the living room.

"Sorry, I'm just relieved." Lotte couldn't stop grinning as the two moved up the stairs. "I've always wanted to be friends with you, Hannah."

"Ugh, stop. You don't want me to drop you down the stairs, do you?" Hannah looked away from Lotte but Lotte could tell from Hannah's cheeks that she tried really hard to suppress a smile.

At the top of the stairs, an aged door stood in front of them. The two looked at each other and nodded. They pushed the door open, which gave no resistance. They found themselves in the darkened hallway, where Lotte first witnessed the apparition. As they made their way through the corridor, they reached the living room. Lotte gasped as she finally saw the true, dilapidated state of the living room. No fire roared at the hearth, only a crumbling fireplace blackened by soot and coal. Various planks of wood were missing from the floorboards and the absence of furniture made the room seem vast. The framed paintings that hung on the walls were faded to the point that they were unrecognizable.

A large hole was at the base of the stairs, clearly the one Lotte and Hannah fell in. Fortunately, it was still possible to go around it. Inching along the edges of the hole, the two gingerly and awkwardly circumvented the gap and found themselves at the foot of the creaky steps. They paused and looked ahead of them, praying and hoping that whatever that thing was, it wouldn't decide to just appear in front of them again.

"Do you think Barbara's upstairs?" Lotte asked Hannah.

She shrugged in reply. "Only one way to find out, I guess."

Hannah took the first uneasy step. The stairs groaned as they ascended. The two witched made sure the preceding step was stable before distributing their weight on the wood. With each step that passed, Lotte felt her heart beat faster and faster. It came to the point where it was difficult to breathe because it felt like her heart was about to jump out of her throat. Nevertheless, she moved on. It helped that Hannah was beside her and helped her push forward.

The second floor hallway was nondescript and was only populated by long shadows that were cast by Hannah's dimming wand. It flickered. Hannah gasped as her wand finally lost the last bit of magic it had. Almost immediately, Lotte felt Hannah's grip around her tighten. Her body started to quiver as they stood at the top of the stairs, frozen in fear. The dark was suffocating and the hallway felt like it was closing in on them. It was difficult to breathe. The frigid, dry air didn't help.

Just before Lotte could freak out, she noticed something. As her eyes adjusted in the dark, she detected a faint sliver of light coming from a wall. She didn't notice it before, possibly because Hannah's wand outshone it, or maybe because the she concentrated on the path ahead. Either way, she moved towards it. Hannah had the same idea as they groped in the darkness to find an unobstructed way towards the light.

There was no mistake about it. The wall appeared to be some sort of secret door. Lotte moved her hand where the frame would be and felt a slight gap. A bit of air rushed through the gap and tickled her fingers. She pushed her ear on the wall and heard a familiar voice that made her heart skip. Without further hesitation, she pushed on the wall and it swung open.

* * *

 **AN: Thank you for the kind comments on the previous chapter. Also, thank you for being patient with this one. I planned on finishing this story with only two chapters but I ended up writing more than what I expected. I hope you enjoy this one!**


	3. Chapter 3

"Lotte! Hannah!" Barbara's stood up from her chair and rushed towards her friends. "I'm so glad you're both alright!"

Barbara crashed into Hannah and Lotte with a wide and tight hug. Lotte felt her leg give way but Hannah helped her from falling. At that moment, Lotte didn't care if she fell. All she could feel was the immense relief of finally finding Barbara. She placed her arm around Barbara and hugged her tight. She wanted to make sure it wasn't some illusion or a spell. It was the best feeling in the world. She laughed at her own thoughts despite the tears that welled up on the corner of her eyes. All she wanted was to stay close with Barbara right now and find a way out of the house as soon as possible.

"Barbs I'm glad you're safe too, but let's get out of this place!" Hannah echoed what Lotte had in mind.

Barbara separated from the two of them. Her eyes betrayed her hesitation. "We can't. Well, we can't go yet."

"What do you mean we can't go yet?"

"Well, uh, it's a bit hard to explain." Barbara stepped aside to give the two a better view of the room they found themselves in.

The room itself was a strange mishmash of well kept furnishings juxtaposed against the dilapidated walls and floors. In front of boarded windows, an antique writing desk gleamed, boasting an impeccable polish. A couch and several chairs circled an elegant coffee table where a magical lamp whose steady, unwavering flame served as the room's light source. As Lotte scanned the room, she eventually set her eyes at the center chair where a familiar figure sat.

There was a short girl with long, wiry hair, enough to cover her face. She sat while she playfully kicked her legs on an aged cushioned chair that was too tall for her. Her arms and legs were thin and bony, clearly malnourished. She stared at Lotte with twinkling eyes and it made Lotte gasp. This was her wraith. This was her phantom. And yet, as Lotte continued to stare back at her large eyes, she couldn't help but feel a strange yet distinct aura exuding from the child.

As the trio made their way towards the couch to have a seat, Lotte couldn't help but be transfixed by the girl. She still couldn't put a finger as to what the strange sensation she was feeling from the girl. Meanwhile, Hannah was obviously uneasy.

"Sh-she's not gonna eat us, is she?" Hannah whispered at Barbara as the three sat down.

"No!" Barbara burst into laughter, despite Hannah's nervous question. "I think she was actually trying to play with us earlier."

Hannah gave a doubtful look and then moved her attention to the silent girl.

"Are you lost, sweetie?" She asked in an uncharacteristically sweet tone.

The girl shook her head and remained silent. She played with her hair, making loops of it around her skeletal fingers.

"She never really talked, but she showed me this." Barbara pulled a stack of yellowed parchment paper from her undercoat. The crinkled stack was bound by twine and its edges were ripped and weathered. The symbols on the cover didn't look like any sort of script that Lotte had learned in magical history class. Barbara split open the book and flipped through pages of symbols and undecipherable script before finally thumbing through the rest of the pages.

As Lotte examined the would be tome, it finally it her. It felt farfetched, and yet it made sense the more she thought about it.

"I think... I think I can speak to her."

Barbara and Hannah looked at Lotte, confused and speechless.

"I mean, I don't think she's human. I think she's a fairy." It made sense to Lotte now, why the girl gave a familiar aura. It was the same kind of sensation that Lotte felt whenever she interacted with fairies. "And I think she inhabits that." Lotte pointed at the weathered manuscript Barbara was holding.

The girl nodded.

"So, um, what is this place?" Lotte asked the fairy.

The girl finally opened her mouth, as if speaking. Lotte nodded with every word the fairy spoke. Her eyes widened momentarily as the girl recounted her story. Even as the fae girl finished her story, Lotte was quiet. She attempted to absorb and make sense of what was told to her, forgetting the fact that Hannah and Barbara are unable to understand fae language.

"Well, what did she say?" Hannah pulled Lotte away from her thoughts.

"O-oh! I'm sorry, there's just so much to process."

Lotte took a deep breath. "So this place is one of Annabel Creme's secret hideaways. This fairy-she's something that Annabel created accidentally in her grief after her best friend died." She looked at the girl, who was now smiling a toothy grin, as if relieved now that her story is finally being told.

"What did you mean by accidentally?" Barbara asked.

"I think Annabel wrote that manuscript to let out her feelings," Lotte pointed at the would be cursed manuscript that Barbara was holding "but somehow all that magic ended up creating this fairy."

The fairy girl leaped from her chair and started to dance around the room. She twirled and skipped gracefully without making a sound.

"She says that when Annabel found out about her existence, she was terrified at first but then grew to like her. They would play every day until..."

The fairy stopped and hung her head.

"Annabel was getting old at that point and she said that she didn't want to write stories anymore, which was why she passed her fountain pen to someone else."

With drooped shoulders, the girl trudged back to her chair and leaped back into it. She continued to hang her head as she listened to Lotte continue the story.

"The new Annabel, I guess she didn't really know about her existence because she couldn't see her. Maybe it's because she wasn't a witch like the first Annabel. But anyway, she was lonely because there was no one to play with her, until she met another fairy."

The girl perked up and smiled, eager to listen this part of the story.

"This other fairy inhabited another item that the new Annabel kept. So when she would go away, the fairy would be sad and alone, but when Annabel would come and write a new novel, she would be overjoyed to reunite with the other fairy. They would play all day and night until they became exhausted."

Lotte looked to the fairy, who nodded with an eager smile. She smiled back, but it pained her when she thought about what happens next in the story.

"Eventually, Annabel's visits were less frequent..." Lotte paused and looked back at the girl, who stared back with quiet intensity. She gulped and parsed her thoughts. "...until she stopped coming."

The room was quiet and the fairy girl returned to kicking her feet on her oversized chair. She swayed her head from side to side and Lotte could only feel pity at the lonely creature. She reached out to pet her head. She was unusually warm, even for a fairy. The girl made a toothy grin at Lotte in response.

"W-wait, Lotte!" Barbara shot straight up.

Lotte flinched. Hannah almost fell off the couch. The fairy yelped.

"S-sorry! I didn't mean to startle everyone!" Barbara apologized and sat down again. Nevertheless, she looked rather excited. "Lotte, can you ask her what item her friend is attached to?"

Lotte nodded. She did find it strange that the fairy never specified where her friend resided. When asked the question, the fairy gestured in reply. She made shapes with her fingers, balled her fist and extended two fingers coming from her first. Lotte raised an eyebrow.

"I guess she doesn't really know the word for it? But it looks like that?" She looked to Barbara and Hannah for any sort of ideas. Hannah looked just as confused, but Barbara was already digging through her coat pockets. It didn't take long until she pulled out a familiar shining trinket. She laid out the silver house key in the middle of the table and the fairy girl gasped.

With her tiny, pale fingers, she picked up the key and held it above her head. Her eyes twinkled, her gaze fixed at the shimmering trinket. What was a smile on her face slowly melted into disappointment as the seconds passed. She lowered the key and dejectedly placed it back on the table.

"I think your friend's still in there and I think I can help." Lotte reassured the girl, whose face lit up at the sound of Lotte's suggestion.

"What do you mean by that?" Hannah was quick to ask and seemed genuinely curious.

"That's..." It suddenly dawned on Lotte that despite being in a relationship with Barbara for a month, she hasn't shown Barbara her talent yet. The thought of doing an improvised show in front of her made her bright red and she was unable to finish her sentence.

"Is there something wrong, Lotte?" A concerned Barbara asked but Lotte only shook her head in reply.

"No, there's nothing wrong," Lotte put her hands to her cheeks. She didn't realize that she was blushing so hard until she felt the heat radiating from her face. Nevertheless, she took a deep breath to calm herself down and closed her eyes.

Lotte focused on the key and what dormant magic it may contain. She was surprised to find that there was a significant amount of magic within the key. It swirled from within like a storm. She continued to concentrate, searching and teasing out any signs of a fairy. Minutes passed and she could feel a bead of sweat forming on her temple. Finally, as she searched through what seemed to be the eye of the magical storm, she found it. She could sense a faint trace of magic at the center of the vortex. Lotte put out her hands, took another deep breath and began to sing.

It was a song that she knew by heart and sung multiple times in front of her family and friends, yet this moment with Barbara somehow felt different. It was as if Lotte was revealing a vulnerable side of hers to Barbara. It was another level of intimacy she shared with her, despite the strange circumstances that they found themselves in. Knowing this, the notes she sang sounded sweeter. They flowed through her with ease and it made her calm down.

As last few notes were sung, Lotte opened her eyes and was immediately met with the sight of Barbara and Hannah staring in amazement. If it weren't for the glowing wisps that emanated from the silver key, she would have immediately turned her face in embarrassment. The three witches as well as the fairy girl now have their attention at the center of the table. The wisps billowed for a while before contracting and taking a more tangible shape.

A red fairy stretched its arms and yawned. It blinked twice and scanned the room, taking note of all the curious eyes watching it before moving its attention to the frail girl. Its tiny eyes grew larger and a smile spread across its miniscule face. With a squeak, it leaped on its stubby legs and jumped towards the fairy girl. There was laughter as the two were finally reunited. The girl ran around the room, throwing her tiny companion in the air as they both giggled.

Lotte could feel the room becoming warmer. She looked around and noticed that the floors have returned to their polished state, the walls no longer dilapidated, and the furniture appeared new. With every joyful step from the fairy, she could see life returning to the dreary house. She looked at Barbara, who also had a wide smile as she watched the fairies play. Hannah looked away, trying her best to hide her grin. Lotte couldn't help but smile.

* * *

A chilly wind blew and Lotte rubbed her arms in response. She shivered as she walked alongside Barbara and Hannah down a stony Brightonbury street, slightly limping but still able to keep up with the two. It was still dusk, despite staying in the house for what seemed like hours.

"Are you okay, Lotte?"

Lotte smiled and nodded. "Yep, I'm fine, Barbara. Just a little cold, that's all." She blew her breath into her hands in an attempt to warm her fingers. She watched as her breath dissipate into the cold late afternoon air.

"I guess it was nice for that girl to let us out. I'm kinda glad it's over though." Hannah crossed her arms and had her nose up in the air.

"Aw, come on Hannah. I saw you smile when she got her friend back." Barbara nudged Hannah on the shoulder and Hannah nudged her back.

"You did not!"

"I saw you smile too!" Lotte chimed in.

Hannah hesitated for a second and then sighed in resignation. "Yeah, whatever. I guess I can't beat the two of you."

Lotte and Barbara giggled at a blushing Hannah, who try as she might, was unable to hide a sneaking grin on her face.

"That's too bad you didn't get to keep your... present though." Hannah added.

Barbara continued to smile despite the fact that she did have to give up the key so that the fairy can stay with its friend. "It's fine. I think Lotte singing was a good enough present for me." She looked at Lotte, who immediately turned a deep shade of crimson at the mention of her singing.

"I, uh... I... that's..." A flustered Lotte stuttered while she attempted to find the words to Barbara's compliment.

"You have a beautiful voice, Lotte. Um... I... I'd love for you to sing for me sometime." Barbara was equally flushed and reached out and held Lotte hand.

Lotte wasn't sure how to react other than bury her face on Barbara's shoulder to hide her embarrassed face. She gripped back at Barbara's hand. It was warm and soft and Lotte didn't want to let go. Barbara must have read the moment because she stopped in her tracks, letting her indulge in the moment.

"I'm still here, you know!"

Lotte felt Hannah bump against Barbara. She peeked across to see her clinging to Barbara's other arm. She stuck her tongue out at Lotte but then quickly smiled and winked at her.

Barbara, on the other hand, wasn't sure how to react at the sight of two girls clinging to her arms. "Wh-what's gotten into you two?"

"Nothing, let's just go home." Lotte buried her face back on Barbara's shoulder, feeling increasingly flustered.

"Yeah, let's." Lotte heard Hannah agree on the other side. At that moment, Lotte knew that Hannah had the same sentiments.

* * *

 **AN: Whew. I finally managed to finish this. I actually had this chapter ready to go after publishing the second chapter, but I didn't like how it turned out. So I scrapped it and started from scratch. I'm still not exactly pleased with this chapter, but I enjoyed writing some moments between the three girls. Regardless, thanks for sticking with this until the very end!**


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